Of Flowers and Falling In Love
by Sentimentality1
Summary: "With a quiet sigh, JJ decided that she would get on with what needed to be done, sure that she would see one of her regular customers before long. Maybe that would help her to get Emily Prentiss out of her mind." Flower shop AU idea found on Tumblr. None of the Criminal Minds characters belong to me.
1. Chapter 1

JJ had gone about her day just like any other: taking a shower, getting dressed, grabbing breakfast and heading to the flower shop that she had taken over following her mother's decision to retire. Truth be told, Jennifer Jareau had had bigger plans for herself, but the shop had been passed down through generations and she could see it close.

Which was how the 22-year old found herself managing a small flower business in 2015, where people could convey their feelings through emojis at no cost at all. JJ didn't really mind the quietness though. As long as she got a decent amount of customers, the blonde was content to just be around the flowers.

Shortly after she had opened the shop and finished the usual jobs that needed doing, JJ heard the soft ringing that signified the arrival of a customer. JJ came out of the back room to find an unfamiliar woman browsing the flowers. The woman had straight black (or was it dark brown?) hair and was dressed in dark jeans, a t-shirt, leather jacket and a pair of black converse. Living in a small town usually ensured that everybody knew everybody else, and the dark-haired woman was definitely new.

"Can I help with anything?" JJ asked, curious as to who the woman was and why she was in the shop. JJ was used to certain people coming in and out regularly, but she knew all of those people fairly well and was familiar with their situations, so she almost always knew why they were stopping by.

"Uh, I'm really not good with flowers," the woman replied, playing with the zipper of her jacket as she turned to face JJ. She pointed towards a collection of white flowers that had dark petals underneath the white ones. "I hope you don't mind my asking, but what are those ones called?"

JJ picked up one of the flowers and smiled. "Those are Gardenias," she answered, pleased to have a reason to talk about something she was knowledgeable on. "They signify purity and sweetness, but they can also be an indication of secret love." JJ raised her eyebrows at that and offered the taller woman a small smile. She was attractive, but then JJ wasn't unfamiliar with the butterflies that came alongside briefly meeting an attractive stranger. She just brushed it off, certain that she would forget about it like she always had done before.

Suddenly aware that she had been silent for a while, JJ coughed and placed the flower back in its bunch. "Are you trying to decide on a bouquet to give someone or something?" JJ asked, furrowing her brows as she waited for an answer. Maybe the woman was looking for something for a boyfriend or something. But something about her made JJ think that she might just be curious. It didn't seem as though she was in a rush to choose anything.

JJ's suspicion was confirmed when the woman shook her head. "No, I've just never been into a flower shop before. This place is beautiful. A friend recommended it as a place to visit whilst I'm here."

"Thank you," JJ replied, pleased that someone enjoyed the shop. "I'm Jennifer, by the way. Everyone calls me JJ though. You can stop by any time. I'm not usually busy and I'm always happy to show off how much I know about flowers." The blonde shot the other woman a wink, silently chastising herself afterwards. Since when did she _wink_ at people? Especially strangers who were only in town for a visit.

Luckily, the woman didn't seem to mind. With a low chuckle, she held out her hand. "I'm Emily Prentiss." JJ took Emily's hand and shook it, taking notice of how bitten down the other woman's fingernails were. She used to have the same habit herself, but her mother had forced her to apply a nasty-tasting substance similar to nail varnish that soon stopped her from biting her nails.

With a glance behind her, Emily stepped back. "Well, I'd best be going," she said with an almost wistful glance around the shop. "My friend will wonder where I am if I don't get back soon. It was nice meeting you though, Jennifer."

The use of her full first name surprised JJ so much that she didn't even say goodbye, simply watching as Emily left. The blonde shook her head.

' _You'll probably never see her again_ ', she told herself sternly. _'Which is probably for the best. The last thing you need is a useless crush on someone who will probably never be interested'._

With a quiet sigh, JJ decided that she would get on with what needed to be done, sure that she would see one of her regular customers before long. Maybe that would help her to get Emily Prentiss out of her mind.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning Emily woke up to sunlight streaming through the closed curtains in her room. Eyes half-closed, she turned to check the time on her phone, groaning when she saw that it was only 7:48. After throwing herself across the bed in a rather petulant manner, the brunette stood up and dragged herself to the shower, hoping that it would help her to wake up.

Once she had finished her shower and changed her clothes, Emily made her way downstairs, pleased to hear that someone else was already up.

"Morning, Emily." The brunette smiled, taking the cup of coffee that was offered to her. No matter how many showers she took, she would never be truly awake until she had consumed at least one cup of coffee. Emily let a long sigh escape her mouth, eyes closing as she felt the warmth spread through her, already beginning to feel more awake.

"Good morning, Mrs Morgan," Emily replied, leaning against the kitchen counter as she drained her coffee. The brunette had only arrived at the Morgan's residence the day before and had planned to spend the day having a look around the small town. But after her trip to the flower shop she had visited, Emily hadn't felt like going anywhere else. She simply wanted to go back and speak to the pretty blonde who worked there. Emily did have a genuine interest in flowers, but maybe she was contemplating playing on it a bit and going to visit the shop again.

The dark-haired woman was broken from her thoughts by the arrival of her friend, who entered the kitchen with his usual gusto. "Hey Princess," he greeted, chuckling when Emily dramatically rolled her eyes at the nickname.

"Watch yourself, Derek," was her only reply, eyebrows raising in a silent warning. The small smile on her face betrayed her fondness for the man though, and Derek knew that Emily would never get angry with him over something like a nickname.

"So, what're we doing today? Did you visit those places I suggested yesterday?"

Emily nodded, pushing herself away from the counter and moving to wash up her mug. "Well, I went to the flower shop," she said with a shrug. "Didn't manage to get anywhere else though. Actually, I thought that maybe we could pop in there quickly today. I think I left something there yesterday."

It was a horrible lie and Emily knew it, but she still hoped that Derek would buy it. However, when she turned around, she found her friend standing with his arms crossed, a smug grin plastered to his face. "You left something, huh?" He didn't even give her a chance to respond before making his way towards the front door. "Come on then. Let's go visit the pretty flower shop woman. We both know that's the real reason you want to go back."

Derek ignored Emily's persistent head-shaking as she followed him outside, trying to formulate a sentence. "No, that's not . . . I don't . . . We don't even know each other, Derek."

"You don't know her yet," her friend admitted with a nod. "But I do. Plus, we all know you have a thing for blondes." At that, Derek ran out of the house and down the street, Emily close behind him, wondering why she ever told Derek Morgan anything.

"You have a good day, Mr Harrison," JJ called, watching the old man exit the shop with his usual bouquet of roses. He would take them home to his wife just like he always did and be in again the following month. The old couple always made JJ feel something warm inside. They were almost famous in the small town and JJ had grown up seeing them together, whether they had been shopping, out dancing, or just spending time together in the park.

The bell on the door jingled and the young woman looked up, expecting to see Mr Harrison again. He often forgot things in his old age. What she wasn't expecting to see however, was Emily Prentiss. Who was accompanied by an extremely good-looking man. Of course, JJ knew Derek Morgan and had heard all about his flirtatious tendencies (she had even been on the receiving end once, but she had quickly set that straight - or not so straight, as the case was).

"Hi," she said tentatively, not sure if it was appropriate for her to strike up a conversation. Deciding that it was fine with Derek, seeing as she had known him for as long as she could remember, JJ lightly punched him in the shoulder. "You should have told me you'd found someone to finally settle down with," she said with a laugh, blue eyes widening when she heard Emily almost choke from beside Derek.

"Oh, we're not together," the brunette assured her, ignoring the feigned look of offence that Derek gave her. "He's like a brother. I just came to visit him because he was so desperate to see me again."

JJ grinned, pleased to know that Emily wasn't with Derek. Not that she would have cared anyway. Her concern had been purely due to the fact that she didn't want the other woman to fall into the same trap as many before her and think that Derek Morgan was the type to settle down and commit. Or so she told herself.

"So, can I help you guys?"

"Actually, we just came in 'cause princess here wanted to see y-" Derek was cut off by a swift kick to the shin courtesy of Emily.

"I just wanted to show Derek those gardenias you showed me yesterday," Emily said, shooting the man a death glare. She began to move towards the gardenias and froze when she saw a large collection of roses, many of which were different colours. "Do the different colours all mean different things?" Emily asked, turning to face JJ. She was pretty sure they did, but she didn't know what they actually meant, so she figured being in a flower shop and all, that it would be a good time to find out. Plus, it meant that she got to spend a bit more time around JJ. Something about the younger woman (according to Derek, JJ was 22, making her three years younger than Emily herself) just made Emily feel nice. Although she was sure that Derek would fill her in on JJ's whole life story when they got back, Emily was hoping that she could hear a lot of it from JJ herself.

"You know what," Emily said, making her way to the opposite end of the shop, where Derek would be out of earshot. "Is it okay if I come back a bit later? When Derek's not with me. I love him, but it's almost impossible to have a conversation with someone when he's around."

JJ couldn't miss the fondness in Emily's voice when she spoke about her friend and nodded in response to the brunette's question. "I'd love that," she replied. "It's usually really quiet around 5, just before I close. Maybe you could come by then?"

Emily just nodded, slowly walking backwards towards the door. "I'll see you then," she said, and JJ could have sworn she saw the other woman wink in her direction.


	3. Chapter 3

Note: Massive thanks to everyone who has liked/favourited/commented. This fic will probably only have one more chapter, but I've got a couple more in the works. Hopefully you guys have enjoyed this one.

Emily had spent every moment since leaving the flower shop worrying. Had she arranged a date with JJ or had it all simply been seen as platonic? She hadn't even bothered to bring any clothes suitable for a date with her, considering the fact that she had only planned to spend some time with Derek then get back home.

As a result, the rest of the day was spent with Emily barely listening to a word her friend said and going over different ways her evening could go. Most of the scenarios she went through were truly ridiculous, but Emily couldn't help but wonder what the chances were of JJ being a secret mass murderer or something. It would be just her luck to develop a crush on some axe-wielding maniac who sold flowers in her spare time.

Emily's excessive worrying managed to take up her whole day and before she knew it, she only had an hour before she would be expected at the shop. After a painful amount of pulling at hair in a vain attempt to get it to stay in the position she wanted it in, Emily just let it fall around her shoulders and ran her straighteners over it. With 15 minutes to spare, she took the stairs two at a time and poked her head into the living room where Derek was watching some show that his mother enjoyed.

"See you later," she said quickly, eager to get going but incredibly nervous at the same time. Derek must have sensed it as well, because he turned around with a smirk.

"I might come along soon anyway. I've just got a feeling that I might need some flowers this evening."

Emily threw a balled up piece of paper at him and turned away to head out of the door, grabbing her bag as she did so. "Don't you dare," she called, not waiting for an answer before closing the door and walking down the street, counting her breaths as she did so.

The sound of the shop door opening made JJ almost jump out of her skin. Blue eyes widening, she checked the clock on the wall, muttering a stream of curses under her breath when she saw the time. It seemed like only 5 minutes ago that Emily had last been in the shop, but apparently several hours had passed since then.

Straightening out her clothes, JJ went to meet Emily, stopping for a moment when she saw the other woman. Emily was dressed in a pair of dark blue skinny jeans and a plain black v-neck t-shirt. Her make-up was subtle; perhaps only mascara and eye-liner, but it was enough to make JJ's mouth go dry for a moment. It made the younger pleased that she had decided to change herself. In any other situation the blonde probably would have worn a dress, but: a) she hadn't had time to pick one out and then style everything else around it, and b) she wasn't sure if she had gotten the wrong end of the stick earlier on when she assumed that she had been asked on something resembling a date. At some point since their last meeting JJ had managed to convince herself that Emily's wink had been a figment of her imagination.

She was shaken from her thoughts when she looked up to find Emily staring at her with a smile playing at the corners of her mouth.

"Did you hear a word I just said?" Emily asked, laughing when JJ shook her head sheepishly. "Well, I said you look great." As if she wasn't sure what to do next, Emily pulled JJ into an awkward hug, although she relaxed slightly when JJ returned the gesture.

JJ led the other woman into the back room and invited her to sit down at the small table before she done so herself, watching as Emily began to nervously play with her fingers.

"Sorry about earlier," the dark-haired woman said once JJ was seated. "Sometimes Morgan's brain and mouth don't work in conjunction very well."

"It's fine," JJ assured her with a shake of her head. "The two of you seem to be close."

Emily nodded, smiling again. "Yeah, we went to school together a few years back but then I had to move. It happened a lot, but I rarely kept in touch with anyone I had made friends with. Actually," she said with a shaky laugh. "Derek might be the only person who carried on speaking to me after I'd gone. I guess that says a lot about the value of some friendships though. It's just a shame I don't get to see him more often."

Unable to stop herself from asking, JJ leaned forward. "When are you leaving this time?"

"Uh, well it's Thursday today and I head home on Saturday, so not long," Emily replied, and JJ was certain that she saw the other woman's face drop. "But I've been thinking of visiting more often anyway, so as long as you stick around, maybe we could see each other sometimes?"

JJ grinned. "Oh, believe me, I'm not going anywhere," she replied, looking around her. "I wouldn't leave this place. It doesn't seem like much, I know, but it's got some history in the family. Plus, why would I leave when I've got the promise of Emily Prentiss visiting from time to time?" This time it was JJ who sent a wink in Emily's direction and the older woman couldn't prevent her cheeks from heating up slightly. Hopefully it wasn't enough to be noticeable though.

Two hours and a bottle of well-hidden wine later, the two women had covered a whole range of subjects, from previous relationships (it pleased each of the women to find out that the other had been in relationships with women in the past) to what sort of flowers should go in specific types of bouquets. By the end of it, Emily was sure that she would be able to recite the meanings of every flower in the shop.

"I'd best be heading back," Emily said with a grimace. Although she loved spending time with JJ, she was beginning to feel guilty about the lack of time she had spent with Morgan. Although she was sure he didn't mind, she still wanted to spend some real time with him before she left.

The two woman got to their feet and both made their way to the front of the shop, neither of them sure what to do once they got to the door. To save the awkwardness, JJ stepped forward and pressed a kiss to Emily's cheek, hands resting on the taller woman's shoulders.

"I gave you my number, right?" JJ asked, waiting for Emily's nod before continuing. "Message me before you leave?"

"Yeah, I will. This was really nice, by the way. If I could extend my trip I would, but it was a pretty spur-of-the-moment trip anyway. Next time I'll plan better."

With that, Emily stepped back and walked outside, her cheek still burning from where JJ had kissed her.


End file.
